vincevincevince - 8:29 am on Feb 12, 2013 (gmt 0)

It is being sued by a patent-holding company acting on behalf of a dead Dutch programmer called Joannes Jozef Everardus van Der Meer.

How is it possible for a company to act 'on behalf of' someone dead?

_{I don't understand the concept of a patent regarding software... copyright, yes - but a patent?}